Annabelle: Creation - 8.5/10

Directed by David F. Sandberg - Written by Gary Dauberman

This film is another back story, much like the Nun, that gives us a background into the Annabelle doll that is present in many other conjuring films. The story tells us of a couple, the Mullins, who live out in a remote town. The husband, Samuel Mullins, is a dollmaker as seems to be quite successful in his trade as the people in the town enquire about his dolls and because he lives in a very large home with his wife, Esther, and daughter, Annabelle. Toward the beginning of the film we are provided with a depiction of the couple losing their 7-year-old daughter in a car accident. Being able to see the beginning of the events is helpful for the viewer to sympathize with the couple instead of just hearing about the back story as many other horror films tend to do.

12-years after the incident; Mr. Mullins offers his house to a girls orphanage consisting of 6 young girls and a nun who stay at the house. One of the youngest girls, Janet, is disabled and walks around on a crutch. She also has to use an old chair lift to travel up and down the stairs of the house which moves eerily slowly up and down. Janet turns out to be the protagonist of the film as the evil presence of the house makes her the target due to her vulnerability.

Each of the girls start to notice something odd about the house from the first day as they are not allowed in certain rooms of the house and are not allowed to interact with Esther as she remains in her room and is supposedly seriously ill. They each start to notice strange occurrences around the house that strike fear into their hearts. Janet's curiosity gets the better of her when she is lured into Annabelle's bedroom and unknowingly releases the spirit when discovering the doll hidden in a locked closet. The Mullins prayed for their daughter to be returned to them and upon noticing her spirit in the house, allow it to inhabit the doll. After some time they realize that it is not their daughter but an evil spirit that was controlling the doll and taking on the appearance of their daughter.

The director does well in providing a good amount of information in the scenes throughout the film through the use of good cinematography. The writing of the film is also very well executed as the story line flows logically and at an appealing pace. The exposition is well balanced and there is no point where the viewer can be uninterested or bored. There are strong references of the Nun throughout the film which just highlights the value of watching the series in chronological order. The story is placed in an effective environment as the house is old and situated in the middle of nowhere with no houses nearby which adds to the uneasiness experienced by the viewer. This uneasiness is heightened by the mystery around the couple's history with their daughter and the fact that Mrs. Mullins is not seen until the end of the film.

Overall the film works well as an addition to the series and also as a standalone. The scenes that strike fear into the viewer have a satisfying build up. Less focus is made on jump scares and more on psychological, eerie fear that sticks with the viewer even after watching the film. The song, You are my sunshine, becomes a signature of the film and I don't think I would ever be able to listen to that song without experiencing some amount of anxiety.

The film has a satisfying end but ends with a cliffhanger as can be expected from all Conjuring films. The highlight for me was being able to see the real life Annabelle doll at the end, which just adds to the terror of the film due to the reminder that the film is based on a true story. I don't think I would even be able to touch that thing with a stick...